Ebola: South Korea on Alert Ahead of Conferences with West African Participants

A health worker in protective equipment prepares a sample taken from the body of someone who is suspected to have died from Ebola virusReuters

South Korean authorities have stepped up Ebola screening measures as they prepare to host a series of international conferences in the coming weeks which include participants from West African nations.

Asia's fourth largest economy is set to hold at least four international conventions in October alone covering a range of areas.

More than 150 participants from West African nations including Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia are scheduled to take part in the meetings. Ebola has killed more than 4,000 people in these countries.

South Korean authorities are taking all precautions despite being aware that since most of the participants are government staff they have little chance of contracting the virus.

Kim Young-taek of the Korean Centres for Disease Control and Prevention told the South Korean daily Chosun Ilbo: "Most of the participants are government workers so there is very little chance that they came into actual contact with Ebola patients in Africa, but we plan to keep a close eye on them."

Though there has been no known case of Ebola in South Korea, the government has maintained high vigil against the virus.

In early August, South Korea's Duksung Women's University in the capital Seoul cancelled an invitation originally sent to three Nigerians to attend a conference.

A sign on a South Korean pub in Seoul read: "We apologise but due to Ebola virus we are not accepting Africans at the moment," sparking widespread condemnation over what was seen as paranoia.